Comments on: The Banality of Occupation: The Rand Papers http://dissidentvoice.org/2009/03/the-banality-of-occupation-the-rand-papers/ a radical newsletter in the struggle for peace and social justice Sun, 22 Nov 2009 20:34:32 -0800 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Mulga Mumblebrain http://dissidentvoice.org/2009/03/the-banality-of-occupation-the-rand-papers/#comment-41433 Mulga Mumblebrain Fri, 20 Mar 2009 02:58:39 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/?p=7082#comment-41433 The US imperial project, like the English, the Dutch, the Israeli, is predicated on an intense racism. Those who the White, Western boss wishes to sweep aside to his advantage, are considered a lesser type. The concept of a 'Chosen People' ordained by a murderous, patriarchal God, spread from Judaism, via the Old Testament, into the worldview of every European coloniser and imperialist. This attitude has never varied, and probably never will. That it is being maintained now by an ersatz 'black' man only introduces an element of tragic irony. I expect it will move into a higher gear as Western dominance is threatened by the rise of China. Nothing is more certain than that technocrats of murder and intimidation are even now studying how to 'liberate' 1300 million Chinese from their primitive, Asiatic, 'Communist' backwardness. The US imperial project, like the English, the Dutch, the Israeli, is predicated on an intense racism. Those who the White, Western boss wishes to sweep aside to his advantage, are considered a lesser type. The concept of a ‘Chosen People’ ordained by a murderous, patriarchal God, spread from Judaism, via the Old Testament, into the worldview of every European coloniser and imperialist. This attitude has never varied, and probably never will. That it is being maintained now by an ersatz ‘black’ man only introduces an element of tragic irony. I expect it will move into a higher gear as Western dominance is threatened by the rise of China. Nothing is more certain than that technocrats of murder and intimidation are even now studying how to ‘liberate’ 1300 million Chinese from their primitive, Asiatic, ‘Communist’ backwardness.

]]> By: mary http://dissidentvoice.org/2009/03/the-banality-of-occupation-the-rand-papers/#comment-40335 mary Fri, 06 Mar 2009 12:54:25 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/?p=7082#comment-40335 I second Joed's remarks on Ron Jacobs' article. This Latuff cartoon encapsulates the banality of the killings in these illegal wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. http://fc04.deviantart.com/fs40/f/2009/051/1/b/Obama_goes_to_war_by_Latuff2.jpg There are others in the same vein on his Gallery. http://latuff2.deviantart.com/gallery/ I second Joed’s remarks on Ron Jacobs’ article.

This Latuff cartoon encapsulates the banality of the killings in these illegal wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

http://fc04.deviantart.com/fs40/f/2009/051/1/b/Obama_goes_to_war_by_Latuff2.jpg

There are others in the same vein on his Gallery.
http://latuff2.deviantart.com/gallery/

]]> By: rg the lg http://dissidentvoice.org/2009/03/the-banality-of-occupation-the-rand-papers/#comment-40316 rg the lg Fri, 06 Mar 2009 00:36:00 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/?p=7082#comment-40316 Ah, the empire ... it muddles on because you and I are complicit in wanting the world the way it is ... by refusing to actually, factually act. Oh well ... we get what we ask for ... 9/11 being the prime example! RG the LG PS -- someone asked me if there was anything I was NOT skeptical about ... and I said, "Frankly no. I'm even skeptical of my own skepticism." Ah, the empire … it muddles on because you and I are complicit in wanting the world the way it is … by refusing to actually, factually act.

Oh well … we get what we ask for … 9/11 being the prime example!

RG the LG

PS — someone asked me if there was anything I was NOT skeptical about … and I said, “Frankly no. I’m even skeptical of my own skepticism.”

]]> By: joed http://dissidentvoice.org/2009/03/the-banality-of-occupation-the-rand-papers/#comment-40308 joed Thu, 05 Mar 2009 22:03:41 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/?p=7082#comment-40308 Mr. Jacobs, thank you for this fine article. I am not sure your sublime last paragraph will have much impact on the "Bachelor" crowd, "The usefulness of this report is in its look into the mindset of a modern imperial machine: a machine that never questions its mission or the human misery it causes but keeps its mind trained only on how to carry out that mission as efficiently as possible. The banality of the evil of modern warfare is contained in every neutered sentence of this document and the thousands of others like them." "...EVERY NEUTERED SENTENCE..." hope you don't mind my repeating your line here. another article in which the author, Major Ralph Peters, lets us in on his little secret that "genocide works". here is the link if interested. http://live.armedforcesjournal.com/2006/06/1833899 thanks again for the fine article. Mr. Jacobs, thank you for this fine article.
I am not sure your sublime last paragraph will have much impact on the “Bachelor” crowd,
“The usefulness of this report is in its look into the mindset of a modern imperial machine: a machine that never questions its mission or the human misery it causes but keeps its mind trained only on how to carry out that mission as efficiently as possible. The banality of the evil of modern warfare is contained in every neutered sentence of this document and the thousands of others like them.” “…EVERY NEUTERED SENTENCE…”
hope you don’t mind my repeating your line here.
another article in which the author, Major Ralph Peters, lets us in on his little secret that “genocide works”. here is the link if interested.
http://live.armedforcesjournal.com/2006/06/1833899
thanks again for the fine article.

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